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General Tabletop Discussion
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On GWF and a versatile fighting style
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<blockquote data-quote="DEFCON 1" data-source="post: 7623245" data-attributes="member: 7006"><p>The problem with any "versatile" style is that there are too many members of the party around you fighting to make "switching forms" unnecessary. Once you get into combat, attack bonuses, damage rolls, and AC all just meld together into whatever melange the entire party has... and no monster you fight is so distinct in what they can do that a player can accurately determine at the drop of a hat "Oh, yeah, for this creature I definitely need the extra AC point, rather than the bonus damage point!"</p><p></p><p>Instead, the players are going to do what they always do... decide on a single form and just play it-- expecting and relying on their fellow players who use different forms to be the ones to pick up the slack for those forms. If a monster is hitting really well... it's not going to be the "versatile" PC stepping up to it while boosting their AC a point... it's going to be the dedicated tank PC in platemail and shield with the high CON mod doing it. So what does that versatility actually bring? Very little.</p><p></p><p>You know what "versatile" fighting is? It's the Bard of 2E.</p><p></p><p>Fairly good at lots and lots of roles... which would be wonderful if they were the <em>only one available</em> to do those roles. But as soon as you have enough others in the group to have a specialized person for those roles... the jack-of-all-trades become less and less necessary and they fall further and further behind everybody else. Specializing in versatility means you are always second-best. So you end up having to hope you're the only one who's there, because at least then you're second-best to nobody else. <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite2" alt=";)" title="Wink ;)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=";)" /></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="DEFCON 1, post: 7623245, member: 7006"] The problem with any "versatile" style is that there are too many members of the party around you fighting to make "switching forms" unnecessary. Once you get into combat, attack bonuses, damage rolls, and AC all just meld together into whatever melange the entire party has... and no monster you fight is so distinct in what they can do that a player can accurately determine at the drop of a hat "Oh, yeah, for this creature I definitely need the extra AC point, rather than the bonus damage point!" Instead, the players are going to do what they always do... decide on a single form and just play it-- expecting and relying on their fellow players who use different forms to be the ones to pick up the slack for those forms. If a monster is hitting really well... it's not going to be the "versatile" PC stepping up to it while boosting their AC a point... it's going to be the dedicated tank PC in platemail and shield with the high CON mod doing it. So what does that versatility actually bring? Very little. You know what "versatile" fighting is? It's the Bard of 2E. Fairly good at lots and lots of roles... which would be wonderful if they were the [I]only one available[/I] to do those roles. But as soon as you have enough others in the group to have a specialized person for those roles... the jack-of-all-trades become less and less necessary and they fall further and further behind everybody else. Specializing in versatility means you are always second-best. So you end up having to hope you're the only one who's there, because at least then you're second-best to nobody else. ;) [/QUOTE]
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